Stacey's Headspace

After a whirlwind September of last firsts (and administrative changes and scheduling issues that are still ongoing for an unforeseeable amount of time), I finally hit my stride and moved into my last October of teaching.

As a school community, we are adjusting to the new leadership, trying to figure each other out in our miniscule amount of spare time.

Taking the next step towards the last June

I spent September making the retirement schedule required to prepare for the big leap.

The very first act was to sign my letter of intent to retire. I made an appointment for Tuesday, October 6 to see the secretary of our teacher’s association, who would help me properly execute the document.

The whole process took about five minutes. No fanfare or party; just sign the one-page letter, watch her stamp it, and make an extra copy for me.

From that point, I had to decide exactly when to deliver the letter to the district. Technically, I have until December 31, but I can do it at any time before then.

Walking out of the office, there was a very large part of me that screamed TAKE IT TO THE DISTRICT RIGHT NOW!! Alas, there was another small part of me that told me to pause. Once I submit the letter of intent to resign, it is permanent, final, no going back. It’s not like I was having second thoughts. On the contrary, every school day solidifies my resolve that I’m done and need to move on.

Ultimately, I was trying not to be impulsive. I didn’t have to act immediately. I could submit it anytime in the next three months. There would be another day, soon, when it would feel more right to take that next step.

That Friday (three days later) would be the day. After rehearsal, I swung by the district offices on my way to physical therapy (more about that in the next section).

Butterflies fluttering in my belly, I stopped at the front desk and displayed the letter. The secretary looked at me and said, “You’re not retiring.” I smiled, and she took me to the Personnel office.

There, I was introduced to a bunch of people whose names I had heard but never formally met. It was a warm reception, for sure, with lots of enthusiastic congratulations.

I handed the letter over, got it time stamped and copied, took a posterity picture, and I was on my way. I walked out of the building relieved, almost giddy by the prospect of making this decision a permanent one. Another box checked for the big transition.

My wonky shoulder

Being an adult gymnast means I’m always managing the risk-reward balance. For the most part, the benefits of this training FAR outweigh the liabilities. Yes, I’ve had many injures from the sport. And I’ve successfully rehabbed them all. Even the big ones.

This time around, my left rotator cuff started talking to me sometime after working on a new bars skill called flyaways.

This injury is similar to the one I had three years ago. I took a lot longer to address it, so it got much worse and impeded my mobility far more than this time around. Waiting too long to see a doc and make a treatment plan is always a bad idea. I know better now.

Dr. David Trofa (who is probably one of my favorite doctors ever) called it subacromial bursitis, basically an inflammation of the bursa sacs in between the joint and the surrounding muscle. Fluid builds up, creating an impingement, or pinchy feeling during certain movements. It was particularly bad in the end range, while I was rotating in the shoulder joint, and it was giving me problems when swinging on the bars.

The treatment? Anti-inflammatory meds for two weeks and physical therapy for six. Calm it down, stay away from bars and handstands, and start strengthening the tissues around the joint. Then, slowly ease back into the skills as I create more strength and stability in the joint.

My goal is to bullet proof my shoulders so this injury doesn’t happen again.

In the two weeks after my first doc visit, I collected all the new exercises to work into my gym time. Handstands and bars were out temporarily, to give the shoulder time to calm down. It was hard to hold back, but I was vested in the healing process. I had a check-in call with the doctor at the end of the two week hiatus, where he cleared me to cautiously start returning to normal. Cautiously, being the operative word. Copy that, Dr. T.

If you're looking for an excellent shoulder specialist in the New York area, look up Dr. Trofa. You'll be happy you did.

So, the over the next few weeks, I’ll start easing back into some of my regular skills and see how it goes. If the pain comes back, he’ll want to see some MRI imaging and maybe do another cortisone shot. We’ll see. Stay tuned.

Lights UP!

I adore Pete. He’s been covering the local high school shows for decades. Through the years, he’s covered Spring Valley Thespian Troupe 721 in pieces like Spring Valley, it’s the year for ‘West Side Story’ (2015) and In Spring Valley, an ally on race lends her platform to the pain (2020). He’s been very kind and quite generous, highlighting our “diamond in the rough” status over the years.

Now, after 39 years of reporting for The Journal News, he’s gone solo, reporting to us as Pete Kramer Media through Substack. He still reports on high school theater in the NY/NJ metropolitan area and he launched his new podcast as part of his media empire. For season 2, episode 2, we sat and had a “hands to heart” chat that absolutely gave me the feels.

One of the things I love about Pete’s work is how well-versed he is in his guests. He asked all the right questions, touched on all the things, people and events he remembers from covering Spring Valley’s productions over the years.

We discussed the ups and down of teaching for three decades in a struggling district. We recalled the infamous AIDA story, where my lead collapsed right after she nailed the money note at the end of the first act. He brought up the personal connections that led to my Changed for the Better podcast (hands to heart). That led into my belief that arts education teaches students to be accountable through “showing up and showing out.”

We also covered being a lifelong learner and starting new ventures, Geriatric Gymnastics, and my next-act focus on helping others lean into becoming a beginner again. It’s a conversation where you’ll learn a little more about who I am, where I came from, and where I’m headed.

You can read Pete’s subscriber-only episode blog on Substack and listen to the episode wherever you listen to podcasts. Despite the weird opening picture (what is with that freeze frame YouTube??), it’s definitely a feel-good episode that will make you smile.

So, that’s what’s happening in October. November is a pretty big month in my neck of the woods. Lots of milestone events to look forward to. Can’t wait to write the November newsletter!!

With warmth and love,

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